The Great Oscar Baiter

Well, we made it. The 365th day in a Year in Shorts. And it seems oddly fitting that our last shot will also be our ( actual ) last UPA short. Before I started this blog, UPA was not really an animation studio that I spent much time considering. Oh sure, I was aware of them. But I never really paid them that much attention, or considered the impact they had on the world of animation as a whole. That started to change the first time we covered them, just four days shy of an entire year ago, to the point where I now consider myself a pretty big fan! And so let us bring things full circle, and close out a Year in Shorts with their 1953 short, The Tell-Tale Heart. (via Wikipedia) Released in 1953 and directed by Ted Parmelee, The Tell-Tale Heart is (obviously) adapted from the short story of the same name by Edgar Allan Poe, although the more cultured among you might better recognize it from the "Squeaky Boots" episode of SpongeBob . Strangely enough, 1953 saw the release of a...

Well, it’s time. I’ve been teasing it for a while now, and I knew I’d have to face it sooner or later. Yes, today we’re looking at Trees and Jamaica Daddy. It will be painful. It will be annoying. And we will all probably wish we had done literally anything else with our time. But it’s an Oscar-nominated film, so watch it we must. And as we do, keep one thing in mind- THIS film was considered more Oscar-worthy than What’s Opera, Doc? (via The Big Cartoon Database) A quick, and unfortunate, addendum before we get to the topic at hand- a week or so ago, I made the declaration that Robin Hoodlum would be the last UPA film in our Year in Shorts. It turns out that was a mistake, and it seems as if we've got a couple more UPA films to get through before we're done with them. In my defense, it was an easy oversight to make. As is well-established by now, I'm quite fond of UPA shorts in general, and have covered them fairly positive this past year. How was I supposed to remember ...

Yesterday, we bid a fond farewell to Mr. Magoo, the flagship character of the underrated animation studio, UPA. Well by sheer coincidence (mostly due to me making a major scheduling error that I didn’t catch until a few weeks ago), today we’ll be saying goodbye to UPA itself, at least as far as our Year in Shorts is concerned. And much like how Trouble Indemnity saw us visiting the start of Magoo’s Oscar success, today’s short takes us to the beginning of UPA itself, with their debut theatrical short, John Hubley’s 1948 film Robin Hoodlum. (via TV Tropes) As you can guess from the title, Robin Hoodlum is a parody of beloved folk hero Robin Hood. Well, beloved by most anyway. Forgive me the brief tangent, but I've never particularly cared for Robin Hood as a character. I blame the fact that my first exposure to him was through the Disney film, which is easily one of the worst films Disney ever released. I know this is a controversial opinion, but the fact that Robin Hood as a fox ...

Well folks, it’s happening again. Yes, it’s time to bid adieu to another series we’ve looked at in our Year in Shorts. For today we take a look at the last Mr. Magoo short to get an Oscar nomination. Well, last for us anyway. Today’s short, Trouble Indemnity, was actually the first Magoo short to get an Oscar nomination. The last Magoo short to do so was Magoo’s Puddle Jumper , which was actually the FIRST Magoo short we covered, and… well, that’s neither here nor there. The point is we’re through with Magoo, but at least we’re going out on a high note, with 1950’s Trouble Indemnity. (via TV Tropes) Directed by Pete Burness- who would go on to direct most of the series, including all the Magoo shorts we've covered- and John Hubley- who would go on to be an extremely important figure in independent animation- Trouble Indemnity is NOT, despite what the title may suggest, a parody of Billy Wilder's Double Indemnity. Which is a shame, because I for one would pay good money t...

At the risk of sounding hyperbolic, I think Ludwig Bemelmans’ Madeline books are quite possibly the most beautiful children’s books of all time. The stories may not always be spectacular (and can be, on occasion, somewhat offensive), but you can not deny the sheer artistry on display in Bemelmans’ illustrations. Every time I open one of those books all I want to do is jump in and let the world they create surround me. But unfortunately, that’s “physically impossible”, so we’ll just have to settle for the next best thing- today’s short, the 1952 film Madeline. (via TV Tropes) Robert Cannon is certainly not a household name, but he's at least become a fixture here in our Year in Shorts. A regular animator and director for UPA , Cannon is on hand once again to provide UPA's signature style of limited animation to the world of Madeline. Based very closely on the first book in the series (using its rhyming narration for its script as well as basing most of its imagery directly on...

One of the very first films we covered in our Year in Shorts was Gerald McBoing-Boing , and as I look back I realize how fortuitous a decision it was to talk about it so early. Gerald McBoing-Boing is, after all, one of the most important short films in the history of animation, putting UPA on the map and establishing a whole new style of animation in the process. Not only did Gerald McBoing-Boing provide a firm foundation for countless shorts to follow, it also gave us some important context in discussing the films it inspired. And so, as we look ahead to the approaching finale to our Year in Shorts, let us also look back at good old Gerald McBoing-Boing by talking about one of his follow up shorts, Gerald McBoing! Boing! on Planet Moo. Although hopefully our sequel will be less of a disappointment than his was. (via IMDb) For those who don't remember, a quick refresher- Gerald McCloy was a normal little boy, save for one thing- he didn't speak words, but instead spoke in...

There are some things Mr. Magoo just shouldn’t be trusted to do. Drive a car , go to the movies , carry a feature length live action film. Yes folks, whenever Magoo gets up to something, misadventure is sure to follow. That’s the premise of the shorts, after all. Still, there seems to be a point in which Magoo’s shenanigans stretch the limits of plausibility. I can understand why Magoo’s dimwitted nephew would trust him to take care of himself. But who in their right mind would trust Magoo with a baby? That question haunts the center of today’s short, Pink and Blue Blues. (via The Internet Animation Database) Directed once again by Peter Burness, Pink and Blue Blues is a 1952 short, making it the earliest Magoo short we've covered so far. It all begins one evening when Magoo's neighbors, desperate for a sitter, call in the services of Mr. Magoo. This is, of course, a terrible idea for many reasons, not the least of which is the fact that Mr. Magoo has clearly never raised any...